Great to have 31 of us out today for our ride to the Olde Worlde Tea Shoppe of Mr Morrison in Chapel, and big welcome to Monica, Lucia and Digby. Pretty tough ride really, but I can only blame myself. I need to take a two-week break from devising, promoting and leading this ride (and will also need a slightly longer break before the end of the year) so if you would like to take over for one or more weeks, please let me know and I’ll explain how to get the route onto the calendar. Come on, it could be you.

After much consideration I have decided to postpone my planned weekend at the gracious Westchester home of Donald and Melania, and lead a club run to Wheelock Hall instead. I'll post a route tomorrow evening.

Here I am catching up with the paperwork rather late (busy life,eh?). I counted 20 riders on Saturday's club run to Minshulls Garden Centre, and 21 on the way back (yes really, not my arithmetic, Phil met us there). Outward bounders were: Cath, Paul H, Paul F, James, Rich, Gordon, Tim Potter (welcome back to your second club run, Tim), Andrew R, Andy J, Andy W, Fred, Mick, Roger, Joe, Jill, Steve H, Steve L, Dave Haley, Elliott and me. I clocked an average of 14.0 mph for the round trip back to home. It poured with rain while we poured our tea (great service again thank you Minshull ladies, so good in fact that I ordered twice, adding a toasted tea-cake after wolfing down my fruit cake, yes I know, I know, carry on like this and I won't be challenging David Gandy in the glossy mags, The Dandy being more my medium I suppose) and then cleared up the moment we left (can't promise that every week, but we'll try).

Certainly there is nothing I'd rather be doing of a Saturday afternoon than this. Come with us next week to find out for yourself.

This Saturday we're off to Tittesworth: 47 miles, some hills, but nothing too extreme. If you haven't yet tried a club run, perhaps you might like to try this one? We'll most likely be riding in two groups of slightly different speeds. We'd love to see you.

Chris - if you want a more scenic section avoiding some of the main A54 on the way out the following is an alternative for a mile. Just before the railway bridge at mile 7 on the route, turn Right through the "Park" (road to the Manor). Its a mainly tarmacked bridleway. Go along that and come out by the Church at North Rode. Then down the hill to join the A54. There are usually some fine (and docile) Highland cattle in the Park.

Delightful ride to Tittesworth today in delightful company. Six in the faster group: Paul H and F, James, Rich, Gordon and Darren; and 19 in my group: Vikki, Andrew, me, Andy B, Jo, Fred, Cath, Steve H, Mick, Dave Haley, Andy J, Greg, Russell, Jack, Graham Mighty Marathon Man, Warren, Phil, Brian E and welcome to Chris Parsons, out with us for the first of what we hope will be many rides. So 25 in all, 23 of whom made it to the café (two caker for me, I confess), so I count that as a qualified success, not that counting is really my medium, otherwise I might have noticed the missing rider a little earlier than halfway home again, but, hey, nobody's perfect, unless of course you do have a perfect body (sadly the one in my post-ride bathroom mirror was less David Gandy, more Andy Pandy).

My average speed was about 13.7 mph from South Park to home. Reckon we’ll do a flat ride next week, unless a heatwave beckons, which, as an optimist, I expect it to do. As my old school friend Oscar Wilde put it: “We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars.” Talking of stars, please bring lights on this ride now – I got home about 5.50 today, when the light was certainly fading, and that was without getting delayed for 20 mins or so with a puncture or mechanical.

Not sure who you were riding with yesterday on the club run to Arley Hall? I’m considering name badges, but you can always ask each other. We’ll have a dry run in the car park next week, eg: ‘My name is Xavier. Oh, so you’re Greg Rowson’. Practice this at home, will you? This week’s homework is to match yesterday’s faces to the following names. Fast group: Paul H, welcome to week two to Monica, welcome to Saturday to Ben Greenwood, Andy W, Russell, Dom, Rich, Darren and Gordon. Intermediate group: Mick (thanks Mick for taking charge and leading this), Dave Higham, Roger, Jack, Graham, welcome back Brian R, welcome back Pete Jackson, Dave Harbottle, Paul F and, just making the cut as usual and forsaking the need to turn into South Park, Dave Roberts. My group: the aforementioned and indefatigable Greg, Jill, Ben R, Dave Haley, Eddie, Steve H, Cath, Steve P, Matt R and Phil. Got that? So 30 riders in all. There’ll be a test next week. Just think of it like The Generation Game: Dinner service...fondue set...cuddly toy….Greg Rowson.

Good to see so much club kit proudly on display yesterday. Don’t forget that the deadline for ordering winter kit is tonight. And good to see more mountain bikers in the car park than I've seen for years.

29 of us out yesterday in three groups for our autumn trip to Longnor. Paul took James, Rich, Dominic, Darren, welcome back to week two to Ben Greenwood, Andy W and Gordon. Dave R led an intermediate group of Matt L, Jon, Louis, Kev, Steve L, Pete J and Mark E, and the rest came with me: Cath, Steve H, Eddie, Mick, Huw, Andy B, Jill, Greg, Dave Haley, Brian R, Dave L and a welcome re-appearance from legendary Cycling Grandmaster John J, seen posing ironically by the defibrillator thoughtfully provided at the top of the ascent to Flash, certainly the hardest climb of the day for my money - £6.00 since you ask for a delightfully fresh ginger cake, a slab of Bara Brith and my share (possibly more than my share if I'm being honest) of the Everlasting Brown Teapot, three of the reasons that the Longnor Craft Centre & Coffee Shop is yet again the winner of the Ride Leader's Gold Award for the Best Cafe on the Saturday Club Run (Road) Circuit. What's your favourite cafe?

My average speed for the 44 miles home to home? 12.3 mph. We cut out the descent of Crowdecote on the way out and came straight back down the Cat after all as the air chilled a little and the light started to fade into a band of sunset on the horizon of the Cheshire Plain. There is, surely, no finer way to spend a Saturday afternoon. I urge you to join us next week.